Comparative proteome analysis of human esophageal cancer and adjacent normal tissues

OBJECTIVES Ranking as the sixth commonest cancer, esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) represents one of the leading causes of cancer death worldwide. One of the main reasons for the low survival of patients with esophageal cancer is its late diagnosis. MATERIALS AND METHODS We used proteomics approach to analyze ESCC tissues with the aim of a better understanding of the malignant mechanism and searching candidate protein biomarkers for early diagnosis of esophageal cancer. The differential protein expression between cancerous and normal esophageal tissues was investigated by two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (2D-PAGE). Then proteins were identified by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ ionization tandem time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF/TOF-MS) and MASCOT web based search engine. RESULTS We reported 4 differentially expressed proteins involved in the pathological process of esophageal cancer, such as annexinA1 (ANXA1), peroxiredoxin-2 (PRDX2), transgelin (TAGLN) andactin-aortic smooth muscle (ACTA2). CONCLUSION In this report we have introduced new potential biomarker (ACTA2). Moreover, our data confirmed some already known markers for EC in our region.